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Friday, October 28, 2016

31 Days of Halloween 2016: Housebound (now available on Netflix)

[31 Days of Halloween 2016: HOUSEBOUND is now available on home video, VOD, and Netflix instant.]

Review by Joseph Anthony

Once in a while you end up picking a movie on Netflix to watch with
zero expectations, and end up having a blast. HOUSEBOUND, the 2014 New Zealand
film written and directed by Gary Johnstone is one such film.

HOUSEBOUND is a hybrid of horror and comedy, heavy on the
comedy, even if the movie begins like a heist film. At the start Kylie
Bucknell (Morgana O’Reilly) unsuccessfully attempts to rob an ATM. She has
had her fair share of trouble throughout her life, but this time she is placed
under house arrest. This means living with her happy-go lucky mother Miriam,
hilariously played by Rima Te Wiata, and her stepfather. Eight months of house
arrest wouldn’t be so bad, but getting stuck with her mom and stepfather seems
like pure hell for her. It’s clear there is a strain on the relationship between
mother and daughter. Kylie seems particularly annoyed with her mom’s
insistence that their home is haunted. Miriam even calls local radio stations to
talk about it.

Soon enough, Kylie begins hearing noises in
the house and having strange sensations that her family isn’t alone in their
home. One night while in the basement, Kylie feels a hand grab her. She’s
convinced that someone is in the house. As her fears escalate, the town police
officer, Amos, starts to check in on the house, not sure whether this is part
of Kylie’s plan to simply get out of her house or if she is telling the truth.

In the process of her house arrest and strange
happenings, Kylie has to see a psychologist, Dennis, only furthering the idea
that Kylie is a liar when she tries to convince Dennis that someone is in her
their house.

Kylie’s fear is real and she starts to
suspect everyone of sneaking around her parent’s home, including one
particularly creepy neighbor. The result of her hunt for the intruder spirals
in comedic and deeply disturbing directions that you couldn’t initially imagine.

It would be easy to compare HOUSEBOUND to
SHAUN OF THE DEAD or THE CABIN IN THE WOODS, based purely on the fact that it’s a
fun, but creepy film. However, neither really give you a good idea of what
HOUSEBOUND is all about. It may share a genre with those films, but HOUSEBOUND
is its own amusing ride.

The creepy moments are creepy enough, and
there are some genuinely funny moments along the way too. If you’re looking for
something that won’t scare your socks off, but still give you a thrill,
HOUSEBOUND might be worth a trip (from your couch) to Netflix, where it is
currently streaming. 3 out of 4 stars